Raw
by chocolate3271
Summary: What if Casey had been hit during the courtroom shooting in raw? Secrets and relationships get exposed as Casey fights for her life.
1. Chapter 1

It had been a long day for Casey Novak. She and the SVU squad had been narrowing down on a gun shop owner who had hired a neo nazi to assassinate a young boy. The squad had collected evidence and arrested the owner. Now it was time for Casey to have his ass thrown in jail.

The trial was going as well as it could with two neo nazi's as witnesses. Her first witness Star Morrison was not as to get on the stage. She practically had to have the detectives tie her to the witness chair. Even after they got in her in the chair she pleaded her fifth amendment right before saying her name. With that witness staying tight lipped her patience was wearing thin. Her second witness was a neo nazi who had shot and killed a young boy. Before he even got to the stand his lawyer, her old constitutional law professor, Barry Moredock, objected.

Casey groaned internally as she heard the objection. She had known Barry Moredock a long time. She had taken his constitutional law class back in law and school and knew him personally when he served on the bench. She had always liked the man, he had once told her she was very much like himself. Both were smart, passionate lawyers who wanted to protect the rights of everyone. Moredock however found his passion in protecting constitutional rights which meant in some instances. Much like the one happening that day, they butted heads.

She stood at the judge's podium during the sidebar listening to Moredock's reason for not allowing Brandon Redding to testify. She argues her side of why he should testify, the judge quickly agreeing with her over rules the objection. As she walked away she hard the bold words of her former professor.

"It's a bad ruling." Moredock argues.

Casey was taken aback by the bold statement the older man had just said and to the judge no less.

"You're letting your moral compass cloud your legal judgement." Moredock states.

"That's enough Mr. Moredock." the judge said giving Moredock a death stare. "Call your witness, Ms. Novak."

"The people call Brandon Lee Redding to the stand." Casey announces.

She watches as the court officers led the man wearing a large orange jumpsuit to the stand. As he was sworn in Casey prepares her first question.

"When did you meet Brian Ackerman?" Casey asks.

"Right after I got out." Redding said. "He saw my tattoos and told me about his organization. He said skinheads were all talk but his group actually did something. He said he had a taget I would specifically like."

"Who was this target?" Casey asks continuing her questioning.

She listens as he stated a derogatory term for both the child and his parents. He added that they told him where his school was and even gave him his school picture.

Before he could add anything else a voice rang out from the back of the room.

"Race traitor!"

The shout which got everyone's attention was followed by gunshots as two landed in Redding's chest. More shots followed. One punctured the judge's chest. Two hit two court officers.

Before Casey had realized she was frozen, a searing hot pain struck her. Followed by another bout of pain. She felt her knees buckle out from under her as she collapsed to the courthouse floor. Only then did it down on her that the floor was very wet. Where did all this water come from? A sinking feeling hit her as she realized it was blood, her blood. She was hit and was bleeding a lot. Breathing got more and more difficult as she lay there unable to move. The room began to sound like it was underwater. Voices and shots became muffled as her eyes began to droop. She thought she could hear someone calling her name.

She could see feet standing in front of her as the edges of vision darkend. She could hear the person shouting. She hard another distant shot and the owner of the shoes fell on top of her. That was all she could take, her eyes slid shut as the darkness took over.

Page break

Barry Moredock had heard the first shot. He had watched as it took down Redding. He watched the second shot as it hit the man in orange again. He had watched in horror as a bullet entered the judge's chest and watched as more took out court officers. His heart nearly stopped when he saw two shots enter the ADA standing in front of Redding. As she dropped to the floor he crawled over to her.

She was laying on the floor as her own blood pooled underneath her. He tries to put pressure on the wounds while trying to keep her awake. She was fading fast. She was losing too much blood. He was more scared than he had ever been in his life. More scared than when he was drafted to Korea. More scared than when he decided to quit the bench. More scared than he was in the car accident he had when he 17. This time was different than any other time. This time he was scared for someone else.

He had known Casey Novak for a long time. He had met the girl in his constitutional law. On the very first day of class he had done tst to see just how well his students understood the rights guaranteed in the amendment. He had written the first amendment on the board and asked what exactly it meant. The first person to answer was a student that was known for being arrogant and ignorant. He had poshly stated what his opinion on the subject. Casey was the first person to challenge him. She then continue to ask him simple questions which made him angry thus giving the case to Casey.

From then on Moredock knew Casey would be a hell of lawyer and he became more than a teacher to her. He was a mentor, a friend and open ear. He had loved that girl like daughter when she needed it. Now that same spunky girl was bleeding out on the courthouse floor.

He begged her to stay with him. Ackerman stood above them his gun trained on the police. He wasn't counting on Dana Lewis sneaking up behind him and taking the kill shot. Ackerman's body fell on Casey causing her to finally pass out.

Ambulances got there the same time as backup. The paramedics took casey away from Barry. He watched as they put an oxygen mask on her fact and strapped her to spinal board. They were mumbling a bunch of medical jargon he didn't understand. He saw Olivia get into the ambulance with her.

The only thing left to do was pray.

Page break

Olivia held Casey's hand as they rushed her to the hospital. She didn't understand a thing that the paramedics were saying She knew that they were losing her and she had lot a lot of blood but was still hanging on. She watched as the paramedics kept firm pressure on the wounds. The ambulance pulls into the hospital and Casey was whisked away.

Olivia went to the waiting room where she knew that had to make an awful to call to Casey's girlfriend. She dials the number, takes a deep breathe and puts the phone to her ear. It rang a few times before the person picked.

"This is Alex Cabot."


	2. Chapter 2

"This is Alex Cabot." the voice on the other end of the line said.

"Alex." Olivia says. "It's Liv."

Alex picked up on the worried tone in her voice.

"What's wrong, Liv?" Alex asks worriedly.

"There was shooting during the Ackerman trial." Olivia takes a deep breath. "Casey was hit. It's bad Alex. it's really bad."

Alex didn't know what to say. It was like her brain and body had gone numb. Just five minutes earlier no just one minute earlier everything was fine. She was almost done was work and she was going to meet Casey after her trial was over. They had plans to go to the batting cage and then grab some dinner afterwards. That was the plan. They were going to have a pleasant evening and now they weren't. Now Casey was fighting for her life. Now the might not have anymore pleasant evenings.

"Alex, Alex are you still there?" Olivia said grabbing her attention.

"Yeah, Sorry." Alex says. "I'll be right there."

She rushes to street in front of her office and hails a cab. Her thoughts raced as she climbed into the yellow vehicle. She tells the driver where she wanted to go and they were off.

She had been dating Casey for a little over a year and had been living with her for a little over three. After she had gotten out of the Witness Protection Program just after Casey had convicted the person she had been running from. From that moment forward she was dumped back into her old life. She could remember that night when they took her out of the program clearly.

 _Flashback_

 _The trial was over. It was guilty verdict all around which meant Alex could go back to her old life. She, Olivia, Elliot, Munch, Fin, Casey and Cragen all went into Casey's office relieved it was all over. Everyone but Alex. If anything she was more worried than before. She didn't know where to even start to rebuild her life. She didn't even know what they were going to that night._

" _Who is up for a drink?" Olivia asks the group of people._

 _Everyone except Alex were all on board with the idea. She politely declines saying that next time she would be there._

 _She says goodbye to her friends and they all leave the room. She made her way to the side of the courthouse. She had been to this spot a lot of times. It was where she went to catch her breathe or to gather herself._

 _Today she went to this spot because she was slightly panicking. It was the first time she had let herself panic in a long time. With her panic attack tears streamed down her face and she felt like she couldn't breathe. She didn't hear the footsteps walk up beside her._

" _Alex." the concerned voice said. "Are you alright?"_

 _Alex recognized the voice as Casey's. Trying to catch her breathe she shakes her head and before she knew it she was spilling her guts._

" _I'm scared. I'm so scared. In the program they gave you everything you would ever need and when you're done they drop you back into your old life. What they don't tell you is that you can't just pick up where you left off. Three years ago I had a job, a place to live, friends, even a girlfriend. Now I don't even know where I'm going to go tonight." Alex cried out._

" _Come stay with me." Casey offered._

 _Alex was so taken aback she started to stutter. Not even able to make coherent words._

" _I insist you come." Casey says. "I have plenty of room. We'll stop at the store on the way home and get something for dinner."_

 _Alex before she was able to get out two words._

" _Thank you."_

 _The two women left from the courthouse and got a cab. Alex had managed to calm herself down enough to make words when they got into the yellow vehicle. Casey told the driver where to go and they were off._

 _Exactly 12 minutes later the driver dropped them off in front of a small all night convenience store. Casey payed the man and the two got out of the cab and stepped into the cool night air._

 _They warm air of the store welcomed them as Casey pulled open a door. Alex heard the faint ding of the bell ringing. She followed Casey as she went down one of the aisles toward the frozen foods._

" _I was thinking pizza." Casey says. "What toppings do you like?"_

" _I don't really have a preference." Alex says._

 _Casey picks out one plain cheese and one pepperoni pizza. After getting the pizzas she made her way over to the drink aisle where she picked up a bottle of coke and a case of her favorite beer._

" _Olivia once told me you were a wine person." Casey says. "Red or White."_

" _Red." Alex says picking up a bottle of Cabernet._

 _They collected a few more things and payed for the groceries. Casey had handed the cashier money before Alex could even get her wallet out._

" _Next time. I buy the groceries." Alex tells her._

" _Only if you're faster than me." Casey said which made Alex giggle._

 _They heard the bell again as they opened the door to step outside._

" _My place isn't far from here. When we get there you'll have to excuse the mess on my counter." Casey says as they started up the street._

 _Two blocks up the street they go up the stairs to a townhouse. Casey move the bag to her waist and pulled out her keys. Alex noticed a small softball bat and ball trinket hanging off her keychain. Casey put the key in the lock and let them both into the building._

 _They stepped inside a small foyer which Alex could see the kitchen from. The place was a very nice place. She was sure the rent was expensive. Next to the entrance to the kitchen was a staircase that led to a hallway upstairs. On their left was a living room that had a flat screen tv which had an Xbox 360 plugged into it. In front of the tv was a black plush leather couch that sat in front of a wooden coffee table that had a game case sitting next to a controller on its top._

 _Alex was so caught up in taking it all in that the furry purring animal at her feet scared the life out of her causing her to scream which startled Casey._

" _Are you okay, Alex?" Casey asks from the kitchen._

" _Yeah." Alex says catching her breath. "Your cat just scared the shit out of me."_

 _Casey giggles from the kitchen which made Alex giggle._

" _That's Petey." Casey said. "He has a habit of sneaking up on people but he's a just a big teddy bear and he loves to cuddle even when you are working or gaming."_

 _Alex bent down to pet the cat who happily accepted the pats. When she finished she stood up and was face to face with a large lizard who startled her more than the cat._

" _I see you've met Larry." Casey said coming into the room. "He's gentle too but you don't look like you're too keen on wanting to touch him."_

 _Alex just nods still looking at the lizard._

" _Petey and Larry are good to bounce ideas off of." Casey tells Alex. "Larry sits on my shoulder while I'm working on a case or playing a game and he's a good listener unlike a defense attorney who just seem to run their mouths."_

 _Alex couldn't help but giggle. She knew exactly what Casey was talking about. Defense lawyers never seemed to stop talking. They must figure that the more they talk the more they convince the judge and jury even if it's a lost cause. Casey hands her a glass of wine._

 _They both plop down on the couch while the pizza baked, Casey found Alex kept looking to her controller._

" _Do you play?" Caseys asks._

" _In the program I didn't have a lot of friends and had a lot of extra time after work. The house they put me in came with an xbox. I spent a lot of time playing games." Alex tells her. "I got very good at shooter games."_

" _Good enough to beat me?" Casey asks with a smile._

" _We'll just have to find out." Alex said smiling._

 _Casey booted up the xbox and the familiar logo came on the screen. Casey hands Alex her extra controller and started up the game. At first they decided to do one on one just warm up on a small map. The game dropped them on opposites sides of the map and they were off. Alex ran into a house for cover. She ran up the stairs and ran into a seemingly empty room. Just as stepped through the doorway the word headshot appear across the screen just as Alex's player died._

" _How the hell?"' She asked._

" _I'd stay away from windows ." Casey warns. "I'm a damn good sniper."_

 _The match continued on with both women racking up kills on each other. The timer on the oven scared the lights out of both of them and Petey who was resting on Casey's lap. After catching her breath Casey went to the kitchen and got the pizza._

 _The rest of the evening when by in a blur. The two stayed up late drinking, eating pizza and playing video games. They had switched from one on one to co-op. Alex couldn't remember the last time she had so much fun. She hadn't stayed up like this for fun since she was a teenager and she didn't think anyone had ever made her laugh as much as Casey did. The things that came out of Casey's mouth while they played the game were some of the funniest things she heard the ADA ever say._

" _That's how it's gonna be, huh?" She taunted the bot in the game. "Oh I know you aren't fixing to shoot me now."_

 _Alex's face had turned red from laughing and tears dripped down her face as she tried to keep up with Casey in the game. It felt so good to be crying from laughter instead of from panic._

" _When I say die." Casey says to the bot trying to stand up. "You die damnit!"_

" _It is that a bomb in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" Casey says. "Oh it was a bomb."_

 _That last comment did it for Alex. She laughed so hard she dropped her controller on her lap and laughed so hard she couldn't breathe. Casey watching the other woman laugh dissolved in giggles herself._

" _That is why I'm not allowed to drive." Casey said when she was able to breathe again. "If you think this was bad you should see my road rage."_

 _Alex giggles were stifled with a yawn that had snuck up on her. Casey looks at the clock on the wall._

" _It's already 3am." Casey said. "We should be going to bed."_

 _Alex didn't want the night to end but agreed anyway. The two women went up the stairs where Casey showed her the guest room._

" _The bathroom is right across the hall if you need it." Casey tells her. "And my room is at the end of the hall. Also Petey likes to nap on your bed so might have a fuzzy visitor in the middle of the night."_

 _Alex slept very soundly that night. For the first time in forever it seemed like. The bed she was in was incredibly comfortable and the pillow was incredibly soft. She didn't realize how tired she was until she layed down. It seemed like as soon as she laid down all the stress she had been carrying just melted away fro a little while and she fell into a deep sleep very quickly. It seemed like she only had her eyes closed for a minute before morning came. The fresh light of the morning peeking through her window woke her up._

 _When she woke up she stretched out her arms and shoulders, her hand landing on something soft and warm. The thing below her hand purred and she recognized it as Petey. She layed for a second petting the cat just relaxing for the first time in three years. After a few minutes she got out of bed and went across the hall to the bathroom. While in the bathroom she did her business, brushed her long blond hair and her teeth. She puts on a pair of blue jeans and a red NYC hoodie and then went downstairs._

" _Good Morning." Casey said as she hard Alex walk into the kitchen._

"11.67." A man's voice said snapping her out of her thoughts.

The voice belonged to her cab driver. They had arrived at the hospital. Alex handed him a twenty dollar bill not even staying for the change, she jumped out of the car and ran into the hospital where Olivia was waiting in the waiting room.

"Have you heard anything." Alex asked Olivia as she came into the room.

"She was hit twice in the chest." Olivia tells her. "There was a lot of blood. She coded three times in the ambulance but she's still hanging on. There isn't much else right now."

Olivia's words hit her like a bus. Hit twice. A lot of blood. Coded three times. How could all this be happening. She was fine this morning. She was was excited to be able to nail Ackerman's ass in court. Now she was dying and there was a real possibility that she would lose her Casey and her heart couldn't take it.


	3. Chapter 3

Alex sunk into a plastic chair. A million thoughts were running through her mind. How did this even happen? How did someone get a gun into the courtroom? Why did the shooter need to shoot Casey? She didn't do anything wrong.

Finn, Olivia and Cragen all sat in the waiting room with Alex waiting on news of their friends. Finn sat next to Alex, his eyes staring straight forward. He was trying not to imagine having to break in a new partner. Alex could tell he was deep in his mind. The others weren't much better. Olivia was on Alex's other side, her eyes planted on a wall clock. Cragen just looked at his hands. The room was an eerie quiet. Alex's thoughts went back to happier times like her and Casey's first day off together.

 _Flashback_

 _It had been two weeks since Casey had opened her home to Alex. In that time Casey had been working on other cases and Alex had been apartment hunting. Although they were staying under the same roof for the past few weeks they really hadn't seen a lot of each other. That weekend however was different._

 _Alex was standing at the counter the day's paper in front of her, open wide to the classifieds. In her hand was a red pen that she was circling possibles with. Next to her was an a glass of coke. She hears the door open and close._

" _Alex." she hears Casey's voice call out. "Are you here?"_

" _In here." Alex says back._

 _A few moments later Casey appears in the room, Petey at her feet._

" _Hey." She says as she makes her way to the refrigerator._

" _Hey." Alex says back, her eyes still on the newspaper in front of her._

" _Find anything good?" Casey asks pulling out a beer._

" _Sort of." Alex says. "I looked at that place I told you about today. I think every cat in there pissed on every surface in that building."_

 _Casey giggles at the description._

 _Casey walks up behind Alex and looks over her shoulder. Alex felt Casey's hot breath on her neck and her heart nearly skipped a beat. Alex's thoughts were suddenly torn from the newspaper and every else instead._

" _What was that?" Alex thought. "All she did was look over my shoulder and now I'm in a tizzy? Get ahold of yourself Cabot."_

" _Are you busy tomorrow?" Casey asks._

" _No.' Alex says. "I don't have another apartment to look at until Monday. Why?"_

" _I'm off tomorrow and I was wondering if you wanted to join me for a bike ride?"_

 _Alex didn't have to think before she responded._

" _Yes!" she says. "But I don't have a bike."_

" _My old one is in storage." Casey says. "You can use that."_

 _-L &O-_

 _The night drug on for Alex. She so badly wanted it to be the next morning. As she laid in her bed her thoughts went back to that evening in the kitchen. How good it felt to have Casey so close to her, the way her hot breath felt on her neck. A shudder goes down Alex's spine._

" _Come on Cabot." Alex thinks to herself. "This is ridiculous, you don't have feelings for Casey. She is your friend and is being generous letting you stay here. Get ahold of yourself. What happened today was nothing. You are blowing it way out of proportion. Now, get some sleep you have a big day tomorrow with your friend._

 _After her internal pep talk Alex dozed off, waiting for tomorrow to come._

 _-L &O-_

 _The day started early for the two lawyers. After a quick breakfast of a bowl of oatmeal, the two were off. The day itself was beautiful. Not a single cloud in the sky. It wasn't too hot nor too cold. It could be described as the perfect day. After a quick trip down the storage they were off to the park._

 _Casey took them to a more secluded part of the park to start their ride. They both mount their bikes and almost right away Alex nearly took a spill but Casey caught her before she fell._

" _It's been awhile." Alex stutters out a deep blush covering her face._

" _It's like.. It's like well riding a bike." Casey says. "You never truly forget. Just give yourself a minute."_

 _After a few more wobbly minutes Alex found her balance and the ride became a little smoother. As they road Alex trailed Casey by a little bit just watching Casey elegantly riding her cycle completely free. Alex could watch her all day._

 _After about an hour Alex came to the realization that while you may not ever forget how to ride a bike, your body will remember you're out of shape. Sweat prickled Alex's face as tried to keep up with Casey. Her legs were starting to burn and her lungs were trying harder to breathe. As they came to an overlook Alex hears Casey._

" _I want to show you something." Casey says._

 _Alex was happy to see whatever Casey wanted to show her but she was more relieved they were stopping. Casey guides them to a bench on the edge of the riding trail. Both of them come to stop and hop off their bikes. Alex pulls the water bottle from the holder on the bike and takes a swig. Both women sit on the bench._

 _Alex had seen many views on New York City before. She had lived and worked here her entire life but this view was something different. From that ledge they could see for miles at a time._

" _I've always loved this view." Casey tells Alex._

" _It's something else." Alex responds taking another drink of water._

" _If you need to stop sooner." Casey says. "Just let me know."_

" _I was just trying to keep up." Alex says._

" _Alex, I've biked to work almost everyday for the past five years." Casey says. "It's okay if you don't have as much stamina as me."_

 _I have stamina of plenty." Alex says. "Just ask my ex girlfriend."_

 _With that the both of them burst into giggles. Alex loved how Casey giggled. She could listen to that sound forever._

" _Okay." Alex thought. "Maybe I have a small crush. I should be over it soon."_

"Family of John Munch and Elliot Stabler."

The doctor's voice brought Alex out of her thoughts. She stood along with the rest of the group. The doctor explains both of them would be okay. The wounds they suffered were nowhere fatal and would be back on their feet soon.

"Do you have any information on Casey Novak?" Alex asked the doctor.

"I wasn't the surgeon on Ms. Novak's case however I do know that her injuries were far more serious than the others. She was hit twice in the abdomen and suffered great blood loss. The surgeons on her case are doing everything they can for her and all there is left to do is wait." The doctor explains.

Alex could only nod a her legs become shaky. Cragen steadied her while Olivia and Fin followed the doctor to their partners' rooms. Cragen carefully helps her sit back down.

"She'll make it, Alex." Cragen says. "I know she will."

"How.." Alex begins.

She swallows a lump in her throat and begins again.

"How do you know?" She asks.

"I know that Casey Novak is one of the toughest people I've ever met." He tells her. "I've seen her take on judges, corrupt law enforcement and many many cases and always come out on top."

"She really is something else." Alex says. "How did I ever get so lucky?"

A voice gets both their attention.

"Alex, Captain Cragen." She says. "What happened to my daughter?"


	4. Chapter 4

"Captain Cragen, Alex, what happened to my daughter?"

The woman who had just entered the room soft brown hair, green eyes and stood at 5'10. Alex had met the woman many times. And she was Marcy Davis. Casey's adoptive mother.

Cragen helped the woman sit down and Alex gently took her hand.

"They brought her in a few hours ago." Alex explains. "We're still waiting on news."

"Alex." Marcy says. "What happened?"

Alex takes a deep breath.

"There was a shooting during Casey's trial. She got caught in the crossfire." Alex tells her.

Not knowing how to respond Marcy just clutched Alex's hand. Silence overtook the room while they waited for news. Alex's mind began to wander.

 _Flashback._

 _It had been almost a month since their bike ride together and almost a month since Alex admitted to herself she had a crush on her friend. She had thought that if she admitted it to herself, she could begin to get over it._

 _Boy was she wrong._

 _Her apartment search had slowed because she didn't want to leave. Just living with Casey made her happier than she had ever been before. She had been trying to work up the courage to ask Casey if she could stay as her roommate. She would be more than happy to pay rent and her half of the utilities. That night she had decided. This was the night she was going to ask._

 _\--LO--_

 _Burgers hissed as they lay on the grill. Casey stood in front of the hot grill making her famous burgers. Alex was inside getting condiments and side dishes ready. Casey had insisted they enjoy the nice weather with a BBQ and dinner on the balcony. Alex had no problems with this. As she stood at the counter she rehearsed her head how she was going to ask Casey._

 _"Okay, Cabot." She thinks to herself. "You can do this."_

 _"Burgers are up." Casey says from outside._

 _Taking a deep breath, Alex picks up the salad and goes outside._

 _The small table outside had two place settings set across from each other. Alex sets the salad down and Casey set the burgers down. Not long after they were digging in._

 _"Okay, Cabot." Alex thinks. "Now or never."_

 _Opening her mouth to speak Casey speaks first._

 _"I wanted to ask you something." Casey says._

 _"I have something I want to ask you, too." Alex says. "You first."_

 _"I was wondering if you wanted to stay." Casey says._

 _Alex was so surprised by the question that she almost stammered._

 _"How do you mean?" Alex asks._

 _"I mean like roommates." Casey says. "I like having someone to come home to and having someone to talk to."_

 _Alex could hear her heart beating loudly in her chest._

 _"I'd like to stay." Alex says._

 _"Then it's settled." Casey says with a smile. "What did you want to ask me?"_

 _Alex feeling a bit silly starts to giggle._

 _"I was going to ask to stay." She says through a giggle._

 _A smile broke across Casey's face with giggles following._

 _Alex's heart jumped at the sound of Casey's giggle. She could listen to that sound all day. She picks up her burger and digs into the delicious food in front of her._

 _\--LO--_

 _After a full night of burgers and laughter Alex and Casey were watching the stars from the balcony. Casey was babbling on about the different constellations. Alex just watched her. She loved how the stars made Casey's eyes shine. Alex's heart was pounding in her chest. She couldn't believe how in love she was with the woman next to her._

 _"And that one is Bellatrix." Casey says pointing at a cluster. "And the wolf star is over there."_

 _Alex looked at the stars in awe._

 _"You know." Casey says. "No one usually lets me talk about stars this long."_

 _"I like listening to you talk about the stars. You feel so big in this world until you see how vast the universe is and then just like that you feel smaller than an ant. It's very humbling." Alex tells her._

 _"Sometimes it makes me feel lonely." Casey admits. "The universe is so big. It makes the earth seem small but then it occurs to me if the world is so small then why can't I find the right person for me in it."_

 _"Look right next to you!" Alex's thoughts scream._

 _"I know." Alex says. "There's over six million people on the planet and I still feel alone sometimes."_

 _"At least we have each other." Casey says._

 _Alex's mind was doing flips but she calmly responds._

 _"I like that."_

 _Casey puts her hand on top of Alex's. Alex's heart began to speed up._

 _"Thank you Alex." Casey says. "For being my friend."_

 _"And thank you for being mine." Alex responds._

 _End Flashback_

"Family of Casey Novak."

The voice of a doctor brought Alex from her thoughts.

"I'm her girlfriend." Alex says while standing up.

"Ms. Novak had major injuries in her chest from the two bullets. One lacerated her stomach and one lodged in her lung. We were able to extract both bullets however her body was too weak to breathe on it's own therefore we've placed her on a ventilator." The doctor explains.

"Will she be okay?" Marcy asks.

"Ms. Novak is a fighter so I have faith she'll pull through however for the time being it's touch and go." The doctor tells them.

Alex could only nod as the information sunk in.

"You may see her if you wish however two at a time and only for a short time." He says.

Alex and Marcy quietly follow the doctor up to the ICU. He leads them down a long white hallway. He stops at room 203.

"This is it." He tells them.

Alex looked in the window at her girlfriend and what she saw made her heart shatter.


End file.
